It's been a slightly long (cough cough) time since I updated my website news- I tend to add more to my Smee Designs Facebook site now. It's just because Facebook is easier to update than the program that my website uses. There's a designer's moral in that sentence! 2016 promises to be stupid busy. We are in the last stages of planning our home extention/renovation, and hope to get the building underway in Feb/March. Apparently you can't have two boys sharing a room unless you are happy to adjudicate WW3 every 5 minutes. It's taken us over a year of...

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Well, August didn't go as planned. But hey, that's life. Still working, still moving on, and still stitching. Feels like I've done absolutely nothing, but that's often how it feels- then you look up and see the finish line ahead. I also remembered I'd promised Homespun a project in November. Not a good thing to forget!!!! So, I'll keep working, keep moving on, keep stitching... just a little bit faster.

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I am now a mother of a 10 year old. I am now old. It was supposed to be the month of stitching catch up, but I have to admit to being a bit slack. I've done two blocks of the How Bazaar, and I'm just about to start the last one, but winter has slowed me down a bit. It's hard to stitch in the mornings when your E.T. fingers are frozen solid and aching. Every mid year school holidays I swear to myself that we'll go somewhere hotter for holidays to get away from the misery that is...

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It is cold in Bendigo. It is very cold in June in Bendigo. It is very, very, cold in June, in Bendigo in a concrete floored exhibition space with no insulation. Did I mention I got cold? Last weekend we were off to the Bendigo Craft Alive show, for 3 days of fun and frivolity (Liar pants- it's actually really hard work, but no-one wants to admit that in case you all get offended. I figure you're understanding enough to handle the truth!) Craft Alive is run by a really lovely team, and targets the regional areas big shows don't...

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Bet you thought I'd forgotten to update my site lately... Because I have. Not my fault; Duncan the grumpy dragon keeps pestering me with delusions of quilting grandeur. Silly thing thinks it's time for designing MORE stitcheries, instead of letting me catch up. So I've finally given up hinting, and kicked him out on a world trip to 'research' the next design. That should keep him busy for a few months while I finish off some more projects, and get ready for my grand web re-design. This month's Homespun features one of our quilts. Margaret did a lovely job of...

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Back from Easter holidays! I'm happy to report that my hissy fit about tent camping at Easter time in Victoria yielded a great result of 'camping' in holiday cabins this year. This meant lots less work for me; the kids stayed drier, whined less and I even got to sit back and relax. Not having to pack up tents in the teeming rain on the last day was a winner also! We stayed at Nelson, on the border of Victoria and South Australia, on the mighty Glenelg river. We hired kayaks for half a day, and had a great couple...

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2015: Duncan jumped up and bit my butt with a vengence. Time to get to work he says!!!! Not that I'm ever 'not busy' really. I just like to further test my limits of eyeball endurance and stitching grip pre-arthritic pain. The 'holidays' are now over, and both my young meerkats are back at school. Oldest in 4th grade, and youngest in 1st grade. They got spoilt rotten by Aunties, Granparents and parents; with many a visit to the movies, some beach activities and day trips around and about Melbourne. Duncan spent 'holidays' consorting with Pixies (yes, apparently they exist,...

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Duncan refuses to believe it's December today. He thinks for sure there's another 3 months to go before he gets a stocking full of gold and precious gems. But as our Christmas gift to you, look under 'Stuff' and 'Freebies' to download a quick little stitchery for the holiday season! Margaret has done a fantastic job quilting up a project for Homespun, and it's off in the mail this week. I'm charging ahead with the upcoming Block of the Month, but I'm nervous about getting enough ahead to keep up next year... on my own project!!! Duncan couldn't care less...

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IT'S STARTED! Block 1 is now OUT!!! AND THE FILES ARE FINALLY WORKING!!!!! Yep, that's right, it's a 'Block of the Month'.... but with a twist. You don't have to lock in to the program, it will be an email delivery pattern and it won't be massively expensive. There is also a single bed permutation of the design, AND a blue colour way version. You will be able to choose. There is ONE block that does need to mailed, simply because it needs to be A3, and most people don't have A3 printers. The ranges we have chosen to use...

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It's sunny! La la la la laaa. How lovely! The boys are over their 3456 flus, coughs and colds, and I'm enjoying some drawing outside in the gorgeous spring weather. Mind you, living in Melbourne, it could be hailing or possibly snowing tomorrow. One friend commented at school pick up yesterday 'In Sri Lanka, we never talk about the weather like you guys do; it's always the same, so why talk about it?' Novel concept! She'll learn fast! In Melbourne, you must either a) know how to talk about weather, or b) know how to talk about football, or c)...

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